Micromechanical inertial sensors (acceleration and rotational rate sensors) are limited in their freedom of movement by stop elements. A task of the stop elements is, through the application of a deformation to the inertial sensor, to minimize kinetic energy that the movable mass possesses when it contacts fixed electrodes of the inertial sensors. In this way, damage to the named electrodes can be minimized.
In micromechanics, in order to perform specific measurement tasks, non-linear beam structures are known for example from WO 2005/067379 A2, which discloses a testing device and a method for measuring force on deformable micromechanical structures (MEMS structures), where a protruding beam of the MEMS structure having a free end and a fixed end is bent against a curved segment until the protruding beam breaks. From the remaining length of the beam, a force that caused the breakage of the beam can be inferred.